I was in California earlier this month, and was happy to finally meet Rachel Long and her beautiful horse Tucker! I had come across her Instagram account, Nantucket_Blue, a few years back and being a fellow horse enthusiast who lives here, I reached out asking her what her connection was to the island.  She replied that it was Tucker’s registered name when she adopted him but that they had never been to Nantucket.  She is from the West Coast and Tucker had made his way to California originally from Connecticut. We chatted a little, I said I’d love to connect next time I was in California, and we made it happen! We had a magical evening out at Morrow Bay and I was thrilled to capture some beautiful moments for them!

Rachel shared a little more about her journey with Tucker over the past 10 years…..”Tucker has been my partner through so many milestones in life. He saw me through all the ups and downs of a growing teenage girl, all the boyfriends and heartbreaks, midterms and study breaks. Together we learned what type of training techniques were agreeable and not so agreeable. We created a language of our own. Today he has taken on the challenges of adulting with a wonderful attitude, even though I don’t have as much time to spend with him anymore. I am now figuring out some big life changes, and how to fit him into those changes. While things might get really hard, knowing that he will be there for me with all his love and understanding makes it worth every struggle. ”

Much like Rachel, I too grew up around horses every day and absolutely love what she wrote! Horses are the best companion and teach us so much about life, responsibility and unconditional love. The day after our photos she took me riding and it was spectacular. I rode her other horse named Trubee and you can follow all of their adventures on instagram at  @Nantucket_Blue  ! I’m so thankful for the evening out at Morro Bay and I was especially thrilled with some of our sunset photos!  I wanted to make something unique for Rachel and by adding some off camera light combined with the magnificent Tucker rearing against sunset I was very pleased! Here are a few favorites from our adventures in California!